Machine for burnishing and finishing the heels of boots and shoes.



C. A. MATSON.

MACHINE FOR BURNISHING AND FINISHING THB HEELS 0F BOOTS AND SHOES.

APPLICATION FILED MAR.10,1913.

wif/71,655 es.

COLUMBIA PLANOG APN Col. WASHINGTON. n. C.

O. A. MATSON.

MACHINE FOR BURNISHING AND PINISHING THE HBELS 0F BOOTS AND SHOES.

APPLICATION FILED MAR. 10, 1913.

1,084,747. Patented Jan.20,1914.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

JJJJJJJJJM ZL'n/e es.

TE STATETENT OFFICE.

CARL A. MATSON, OF LYNN, MASSACHUSETTS, ASSIGNOR OF ONE-HALF TO ALBERT M. HOYT, OF SWAMPSCOTT, MASSACHUSETTS.

MACHINE FOR BURNISHING AND FINISHING THE HEELS OF BOOTS ANI) SHOES.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Application filed Marc-h 1C, 1913.

Patented Jan. 20, 1914.

Serial No. 753,197.

To all 'LU/tom t may (zo/neem Be it known that I, CARL A. lLvrsoN, a citizen of the United States, residing at Lynn, in the county oi Essex and State et Massachusetts, have invented new and useful Improvements in Machines for Burnishing and Finishing the Heels ot' Boots and Shoes, otl which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to a. machine for burnishing and finishing the heels of' boots and shoes either by the wax treating operi tion or by burnishing the edges of said heels after they have been colored with a suitable coloring material.

The object of the invention is to provide a machine in which is embodied a work rub' bing wheel which will apply wax evenly to the edges ot the heels of boots and shoes and which will also impart a rubbing, polishing and bnrnishing action to the edges oit the heels of boots and shoes when they are held against it, and moreover, the invention contemplates using a wheel having a continuous, yielding metallic periphery which will accommodate itself to the different curves of the edges of boot and shoe heels, together with a former which will shape the crosssectional contour of the periphery of the wheel so as to adapt the same metallic peripheried wheel to heels having different shaped or curved edges.

In the embodiment of my invention hereinafter set t'orth in the specification and illustrated in the drawings, means are shown for applying melted wax to the periphery of the work rubbing member or wheel, said means being substantially the same as described and shown in my co-pending application for Letters Patent Serial No. 731l,507 filed December 2, 1912, and in this machine the heels of boots and shoes are wax treated by means of the improved wheel or work rubbing member, the wax heilig applied in a melted condition to the periphery of the wheel and the superfluous wax being` removed therefrom by means ot a scraper which not only performs the operation of removing the superfluous wax from the periphery of lthe wheel, but also shapes the periphery to tit the edges of the heels ot boots and shoes which are being operated upon. It is evident, however, that it' desired the wax may be applied to the periphery ot the wheel by means of. a stick held against said periphery, or in any of the various ways in which wax has heretofore been applied to the surface el? the work rubbing wheel in this art.

It is desirable, in addition to rubbing the heel circumferentially thereof .in the wax treating operation to also simultaneously rub the heel transversely thereof or preferably in a direction from the heel seat toward the top lift, and it :is the object of this invention to provide a wheel combined with a. former which shall perform such an opera tion upon the edges of boot and shoe heels of different shapes which are applied to its periphery.

In addition to wax treating the edges of the heels of boots and shoes by means of my improved heel burnishing and finishing mau chine, the same may be used to burnish said edges without the use of wax-that is, it may be used to impart a high luster to the edges of heels of boots and shoes oi diil'erent shapes, and where the same is used without wax a coloring material is employed on the edges ot.' the heels, such as blacking, and the liurnishing wheel is then utilized to burnish or polish the edge ot the heel with this coloring material thereon. In either case, whether by wax treating or by burnishing a colored heel my improved burnishing wheel for burnishing and finishing the heels of boots and shoes imparts a high luster and smooth finish to the edge of the boot or shoe heel to which it is applied, and by means of the former which shapes the periphery ot' the wheel to lit the edge of the heel a very fine and complete burnishing or finishing is obtained, as the case may be, extending over the entire surface o'l.E the edge o'l' the heel.

The invention, therefore, consists in a machine t'or burnishingl and finishing the heels oll boots and shoes such as described in the following specification and particularly set forth in the claims.

Referring to the drawings. Figure l is a Side elevation oi my improved machine 'for burnishing and finishing the heels ot boots and shoes. Fig. 2 is a sectional elevation taken on line @m2 of Fig. l, both liigs. 1 and 2 being broken away to save space in the drawings. Fig. 3 is a sectional elevation taken on line QMS of Fig. l, a portion of a shoe being shown in connection therewith in position. to be operated uponby the work rubbing wheel. Fig. 4 is a plan view of the work-rubbing wheel.

Like numerals refer to like parts throughout the several views of the drawings.

In the drawings, 5 is the frame of the machine; 6 is the main driving shaft to which is fastened the work-rubbing wheel 7. The wax is contained in a wax pot 8 and is fed from a supply chamber 9 to an intermediate chamber 10 in which it is kept at" a predetermined height by a float valve 11, the wax passing from the chamber 9 into the chamberl 10 through a port 12 which is opened and closed by the float valve 11. From the chamber l() said melted wax passes into the feed chamber 13 through a port 14. The wax is kept in a melted condition by means of a gas jet, gas being supplied by means` ofv a pipe 15. rihe shaft 6 is rotated by any suitable means, such as a pulley, and the work rubbing wheel 7 which is attached to the front end of the shaft embodies a hub 16 which is fastened by a set-screw 17 to said shaft 6. The periphery of the4 wheel7 is formed by a,v flexiblemember preferably consistingof a metallic strip 1S forming a helix, one. end of said metallic member being fastened, preferably, by welding to a ring 19, the other end of said metallic member being fastened to an annular flange 2O which fla-nge is fastened by'mea-ns of screws 21 to a cylindrical flange 22 forming part of the hub 16. The ring 19 fits in an annue lar recess 23 providedfin a flange 24 and is fastened thereto by means of screws 25. rThe cylindrical flange 22 is provided with an annular recess 2,6 to receive and center the flange 20. The flange 24 is provided with a hub 27 which is adjustably fastened to the hub 16 by means of a set-screw 28. The helical member 18 is thus fastened to a holder, said holder consistingof the hub 16, the flanges 24, 22 and 2O and the ring 19. It will thus be seen thatthe helical member constitutes the periphery of the wheel 7 and is supported upon the holder hereinbefore described, which holder is fastened to the shaft 6 by the set-screw 17 and is rotated therewith. The adjacent convolutions of the helical member 13 cont-act with each other, so that the wax does not penetrate to the interior of the wheel when said wheel is used as a finishing wheel, and the flangesv 24 and20, together with the ring 19, act to hold the convolutions of the helical member aga-inst lateral movement relatively to each other. By adjusting theflange 24 toward the flange 20 it will be seen that thedierent convolutions of the helical member 18 may be clamped against each other.

The helical member 18 is preferably formed from a tube of the proper size which' is placed upon a lathe and cut so as to form the different convolutions of said helical member. 1t is then placed in a lathe and its convolutions clamped against each other by any suitable means and the convex outer surface of the same is then turned thereon in said lathe. rFhis outer surface may be made convex if so desired, but in this form of my invention it is made straight or flat, and the convex shape is given to it by a former in a manner hereinafter described. The inner diameter of the helical member is made greater than the outer diameter of the flange 22, so that a space 29 is provided inthe finished wheel which allows the different convolutions of the helix to yield or move inwardly toward the median axial line of the wheel without abutting against said cylindrical flange 22.

Suitable means for heating the wheel 7 is provided, such as the gas pipe 30. It will be seen 'that the periphery of the wheel 7 is a continuous yielding metallic periphery and also that the periphery is resilient.

lVhile I have described the wheel 7 as formed of metal, it will, however, be evident that any material which is hard as compared with leather and is therefore capable of polishing or burnishing leather when rubbed thereagainst would be an equivalent of metal and may be used without departing from the spirit of this invention. Such a material may befound in fiber and may be used with very good results, although not so durable and satisfactory `asmetal.

The wax pot 8 is provided with a cover 31 which extends partly aroundthe wheel 7. Said cover islocked in position by means of an arm 32 which is provided with a screw 33 adaptedto bear against a boss 34 on the wax pot 8. Vhen the screw 33 is in contact with the. boss 34, then the cover is locked downwardly in position over the wheel 7. When it is desired to unlock the same and throw the cover 31 backwardly upon its 31 is provided with a slot 36 in which is slidably mounted a former 37. Said former is adapted to bear against the periphery of lthe wheel 7 and is formed on a curve corresponding to the shape of the edgeV of the l,heel which it is desired to operate upon. ,Said former may be moved bodily away Afrcmthe wheel 7`by means of screws 38 `which have screw-threaded engagement with the cover 31, as seen in Figs. 1 and 2. Said screws 38 are provided with heads 39' and are encircled by springs 40, one end of said springs bearing against the heads 39, the other end of said springs bearing against washers 41 which are seated upon the rear4 edge of the former 37 The screws 33 are provided with flanges 42, these flanges being hemispherical upon their outer faces, so that the former 37 may be moved toward `or away from the wheel 7 and also may be moved so as to stand at different angles to the periphery thereof by turning one of the screws 3S while leaving the other screw stationary. By this means the former will tip to different angles relatively to the wheel, as illustrated in Fig. 3, and thus the edge of the wheel will be caused to assume different curves to fit varying edges of heels. lVhen the former is pressed against the periphery of the wheel 7, it being convex will cause the portion of the periphery of said wheel adjacent thereto to become concave, while that portion of the periphery of said wheel diametrically opposite said former will be made convex or of the same curve as the edge of the former which bears against the periphery of the wheel 7.

The former, in addition to shaping' the edge of the wheel to fit the edge of the boot or shoe heel upon which it is desired to operate, also acts as a scraper to remove the superfluous wax from the periphery of the wheel when liquid wax is used thereon.

The former 37 is held against the periphery of the wheel to shape the same by means of the springs 40. It is, therefore, evident that if sufficient pressure is brought to bear upon the periphery of the wheel 7 by the heel of the shoe 13, said periphery will yield slightly, being allowed so to do by the springs l() yielding, so that the former 37 is held against the periphery of the wor; rubbing wheel with a yielding pressure, but can be positively moved away from said wheel to assume different positions relatively to the periphery thereof by means of the screws 38.

The general operation of the mechanism hereinbefore specifically described is as follows: rIhe heel of the shoe lf3 is placed against the periphery of the work rubbing member 7 and said work rubbing member is rotated in the direction o-f the arrow a (Fig. l). The wax is supplied to the chamberl 10 in sufficient quantity so as to keep the level thereof in the feed chamber 13 always at the height of the line h (Fig. 2). The wheel 7 is kept heated by a gas jet from the pipe 30 and the wax is carried up on the periphery of said wheel until it encounters the combined former and se aper 37, when the superfluous wax is removed from the periphery of the wheel and that portion of said wheel from which the wax has been removed then moves forward in the direction of the arrow t and rubs the edge of the heel of the shoe Af3 which is held against it, thereby placing upon the heel a thin and even film of wax and thoroughly rubbing it and burnishing it into the edge of the heel.

It will be understood that the periphery of the work rubbing wheel 7, as a whole, will yield and conform to slightly varying shapes in cross sectional contour of the edges of different heels of boots and shoes which may be applied thereto in performing the burnishing and finishing operation. It will also be understood that as the member 1S is formed as a helix, when the wheel is rotated there will be a polishing action extending cireumferentially of the edge of the heel and also a tendency to lay the fibers of the leather smoothly by reason of the action of the helically disposed convolutions of the member 18 which thus stand at an angle and tend to rub the edge of the heel from the heel seat toward the top lift.

As hereinbe'fue set forth the former 37 can he tipped to different angles to `vary the cross sectional contour of the periphery ol the wheel 7 and it is also evident that if the change in shape is too great to be attained by thus tipping' and adjusting the former, a variety of different shaped foi-mers can be utilized of a shape to produce any shape which may be desired, from a periphery with a flat surface to one with a convex surface of as great a degree as may be desired to burnish or finish the most concave heels of ladies shoes.

After the heel has been wax treated by the work rubbing wheel 7 and an even coat of wax has been placed upon the edge of the heel and thoroughly burnished and polished thereon, said heel is afterward subjected to the action of a padding roll and a brush to obtain a finer polish in a manner well known to those skilled in this art.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim and desire by Letters Patent to secure is:

1. A machine for burnishing and finishing the heels of boots and shoes having, in combination, a wheel with a continuous, yielding, metallic periphery and a former adapted to bear against the periphery of said wheel, whereby the form of said periphery may he altered.

2. A machine for burnishing and finishing parts of boots and shoes, having, in combination, a wheel having a continuous, resilient, metallic periphery and a convex former adapted to bear against the periphery of said wheel, whereby said periphery adjacent to said former is caused to assume a concave form and that portion of said periphery diametrically opposite to said former is caused to assume a convex form.

A. machine for burnishing and finishing the heels of boots and shoes having, in combination, a wheel with a cireiu'nferentially ctmtinuous, resilient periphery and a former adapted to bear against said periphery and sinuiltaneously change the cross sectional contour of that portion of said periphery adjacent to said former and that portion of said periphery diametrically opposite to said former.

fl. A machine for burnishing and finishing the heels of boots and shoes having, in; comfbination, a wheel with a continuous, yield'- ing, metallic periphery, a former adapted to bear againstthe periphery of'said wheel and meansadapt'ed to adjust saidf'ormer toward and away from said'wheel.

5. A machine for burnis'hing and finishing the heels of" boots and slices having, in com'- bination, a wheel with a continuous, yielding, metallic periphery, a former adapted to bearv against the periphery of said wheel and means to change the angle of said former to the periphery of said wheel laterally thereof, whereby the cross sectional contour of said periphery may be varied to fit different shaped heels.

6. A machine for burnishing and finishing the heels of boots and shoes having, in combination, a` wheel with a continuous', yielding, metallic periphery, a for-mer adapted to bear against the periphery of saidiwheel and means adapted to hold said former against said wheel with al yielding pressure, said means including devices adapted to move said former positively away from said wheel.

7. A machine for burnishing and finishing the heels of' boots and-shoes having, in combination, a wheel with a continuous, yielding, metallic periphery, means adapted to supply wax to the periphery of said wheel and a former adapted to bear against the periphery of said wheelwhereby superfluous-wax maybe removed therefrom and the cross sectional contour of said periphery at a point diametrically opposite said former determined.

8. A machine for burnishing and finishing the heels of boots and shoes having, in combination, a heel burnishing and finishing wheel consisting of a strip of metal forming a helical member and Aconstituting the periphery of said wheel, a holder for said member and a former adapted to bear against the periphery of said wheel.

9. A machine for burnishing and finishing the heels of boots and shoes having, in combination, a heel burnishing and finishing wheel consisting of a strip of materialform'- ing a helical member and constituting the periphery of said wheel,` said Wheel being arranged to be supplied with wax,v and a holder for said helical member adapt'edto support said helical member with the adjacent convolutions thereof in contact with each other and a former adapted to bear against the periphery of said Wheel? and simultaneously remove superfluous wax from the periphery thereof and change the cross sectional contour `*of the periphery of said wheel at a point diametrically opposite said former. Y

In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand in presence of two subscribingwitnesses.

CARL A. MATSON. Vitnesses CHARLES S GoomNG, SYDNEY E. TAFTL Copies of this patent may be obtained for ve cents each, by addressing the Commissioner oi Patents, Washington, D. C. 

